In the prior art there are machines for receiving containers, such as filled bottles or cans, and these filled containers are, in many instances, delivered to a packing station where the containers are packed into cases using a variety of container and case transfer mechanisms. In some instances, the case packing machine is adapted to receive only one size and shape of container and a new and different machine is needed for each different size and shape.
Accordingly, it is a general object of the present invention to provide a machine which can pack a variety of shapes of bottles into cases and also be readily adapted to pack different sizes of bottles.
For some markets, the packing house operator does not need ultra-high speed packaging equipment which operates continuously around the clock, but only needs lower cost equipment which is reliable, adaptable to different size bottles, and is available when the operator has a batch of his particular product to package.
Accordingly, it is another object of the present invention to provide a reliable, relatively low cost and easy to maintain apparatus for packing bottles in cases.
In some prior art case packers, the bottles or containers to be packed are of irregular size, that is, they are of rectangular or oval cross-sections as compared to containers having circular or square cross-sections. If such irregular shaped bottles or containers are held by a stop on a conveyor prior to being transferred to a case or other packing station, there is a tendency for the motion of the conveyor to drive the bottles together so that a wedging or shingling type of compacting occurs thereby making further handling of the bottles quite difficult. Bottles of this shape are often popularly used for packing syrup or detergents.
Accordingly, it is still another object of the present invention to provide an apparatus which can spread-apart a column of bottles that has been wedged together and distribute them evenly into a case or carton.
Yet another object of the present invention is to provide a case packer that is relatively compact in size and takes up a minimum of floor space within a packing plant.
These and other objects and advantages of the present invention will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art upon reading the summary of invention and detailed description below with reference to the attached drawings.